ABSTRACT. Silica xerogel from corn husks shows potential to be applied as an adsorbent for cationic dye removal due to its high adsorption capacity. However, the study regarding its performance in a continuous operation is still very limited, which hinders its application as a commercial adsorbent. To answer that problem, we investigate the adsorption of methylene blue (MB) and crystal violet (CV) dye using silica xerogel from corn husk in a continuous fixed-bed column. A breakthrough curve analysis was carried out with flow rate and bed height variations in an up-flow mode. The column effluent concentration was analyzed using a UV-Vis Spectrophotometer. The experimental data shows good agreement with the Thomas/Bohart-Adams and Yoon-Nelson model at different flow rates but has less correspondence for increasing bed height. Maximum adsorption capacities for methylene blue were 1.977 mg/g (Thomas/BA) and 1.743 mg/g (experimental). While for crystal violet the maximum adsorption capacities were 3.400 mg/g (Thomas/BA) and 4.573 mg/g (experimental). Keywords: adsorption, cationic dyes, silica xerogel, fixed-bed column, mathematical model.
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